A former police vehicle has been transformed into a state-of-the-art mobile music studio by Noods Levels, bringing life-changing creative opportunities directly to doorsteps in some of Bristol’s most underserved areas. Izzy Cross, Noods’ co-director, talks to Rosanna Spence about the powerful potential of TREAD…
Our city’s connection to vans runs deep. Whether it’s people choosing to (or needing to) follow alternative living lifestyles on the road, street food slingers pulling up and serving some of the best kerbside bites or the likes of a brand-new purpose-built mobile music studio housed in a converted vehicle – it’s safe to say elements of Bristol’s culture truly pulses when it’s on four wheels. With a world-class reputation for producing music stars to boot – a local project promising to put music on the road and deliver life-changing creative opportunities to underserved communities in the region already sounds like a hit.
There’s probably no organisation better placed to make good on such a promise than the team at Noods Levels, the not-for-profit, community interest sister company (CIC) of Bristol’s iconic Noods Radio.
“The radio began in 2016 with Leon and Jack, the founders, travelling around people’s living rooms and starting this community of misfits and dancers through radio,” explains Izzy Cross, Noods’ co-director, who joined them in 2018. “We built the radio station together and created the CIC during Covid as a response to making sure the community wasn’t lost.
“Around 2022, Noods Levels was doing projects around photography and graphic design, and we felt we could recreate the story of the radio, but use it to reach people in underserved areas and eventually get outside Bristol. We decided to package 10 years of broadcasting experience, sound and technical ability alongside our experience of delivering social impact projects.”
This package – it turns out – was realised in the shape of a former Greater Manchester Police vehicle that’s been transformed into TREAD: a state-of-the-art mobile music studio (affectionately named Ivy by the team) designed to bring professional creative opportunities directly to Bristol’s doorsteps.
All roads lead to…
TREAD has now officially launched alongside an ambitious 12-month programme of fully funded workshops through its TREAD Bristol initiative. Bolstered by the support from Youth Music, the National Lottery Awards for All, the John James Foundation and the Quartet Foundation, the initiative will deliver 280 fully funded workshops, providing free music education to more than 840 young people aged 12–25.
“It’s all about getting it heard,” says Izzy. “Bristol has deep musical roots, and what we’ve created combines commercial value with strong social impact.”
TREAD is working on projects where Izzy and the team are identifying potential within organisations and using their industry networks to bring in brands and partners. “If we can act as a bridge between investment and opportunity, that’s the goal.”
Izzy hopes to help showcase existing talent and initiatives, which will encourage people to believe they can succeed, regardless of where they’re from: “Outside the city centre, it can be harder to get noticed, so if we can build momentum in other areas, that would be significant.”
The entire van is fully equipped with industry standard studio grear, including professional microphones, monitors and the latest production software.
“We want it to feel like stepping into somewhere like Red Bull Music Studios; as if you’re paying £500 an hour to be there,” notes Izzy. “The van can function as a podcast studio, DJ setup or performance stage.
“We want people to feel they’re entering a studio they might otherwise have to travel miles to access. One of our core values has always been having fun. If we can go into communities, create that sense of excitement, and offer something new, that’s powerful.”
The team’s long-term hope for TREAD’s impact is about helping young people engage more with their local youth clubs, with Izzy wanting to collaborate with youth clubs, schools, and education partners to elevate what they’re already doing. The idea is that continued engagement could give access to the van for free.
“We also operate a Robin Hood model,” she adds. “At weekends, we take on commercial work, like festival pop-up radio, which helps fund community activity. Ideally, we could support a young person through training and then get them paid work at a festival, or run a music programme and have participants perform the following week.”
Music to our ears
It feels poignant that TREAD’s home is inside a renovated police van, now engaging with communities that are chronically impacted by the cost of living, and limited access to opportunities. TREAD’s transformation has become almost culturally poetic, reclaiming a space where people experiencing the very barriers to creative expression the initiative hopes to tackle may have been held. Being on wheels is giving TREAD momentum in more ways than one.
“Equipment, acoustics, and travel are expensive, and social mobility is declining because people can’t afford to travel,” Izzy explains. “What we’re offering is to bring opportunity directly into communities; going back to the original idea of travelling to people’s spaces [in the same spirit as Noods Radio], but with industry-standard quality.
“People shouldn’t feel disadvantaged because they lack access. Statistically, the more rural or deprived an area, the fewer opportunities and resources available.”
The response to TREAD’s work already has been “incredible”. Izzy recalls how for years she was initially pitching the idea using a simple drawing of the van because she couldn’t afford one.
That drawing became reality, and now she’s using real images of the van in action to spread the word.
“We’ve had immense support from partners, but the key is sustainability – delivering what we promise and supporting organisations in their work. I recently visited a group supporting young people affected by knife crime; if we can provide a fully funded resource to support that kind of work, that’s exactly what we want to do. Many of these organisations go unseen because they focus on groundwork. If we can help highlight them, that’s important.”
TREAD has hit the road at full speed, with Izzy citing a recent example of its success in action thanks to a workshop at Hartcliffe City Farm, working on field recordings with two groups of school children (one with additional needs an another that specialises in after school meal provision service.)
“The kids just fell in love with sound,” she says. “Apparently, before they’d go crazy at the animals, but this time, they were deep listening because they had to record them. It was our first workshop after months of planning, and we’ve been invited back, which makes it all worthwhile.
“We also recently visited The Pickle Factory, where young MCs used the van as a stage. Seeing them perform and gain confidence is exactly why we’re doing this.”
TREAD’s overall mission, according to Izzy, is “to bridge industry and community”.
Funding requirements mean that the initiative will be piloted in Bristol for the first six months, with the aim to then expand across the South West and the West of England, and eventually work nationally.
It’s vital that Izzy and the team build trust with organisations. “There has been a long-standing decline in outreach services, so if we go into communities, it is very important that we stay,” she notes. “We want to build strong roots that don’t disappear after an eight-week cycle.”
The next big thing
Though in its relative infancy, how does Izzy see TREAD evolving over the next year?
“The dream is that the van is fully operational, with workshops on every day and activity spread across the West of England, with some national reach,” she muses. “I’d also love a second vehicle; Ivy has limitations. Ideally, we would develop a fully accessible vehicle for wheelchair users. We’re working with WECIL [a user-led organisation supporting Disabled people to live the life they choose], who gave valuable feedback on accessibility, and in future we’d design something inclusive from the start, because accessibility isn’t just about location or cost, it’s about whether people can physically use the space.”
Another goal Izzy mentions is a hope to build a board of industry experts; as a CIC entering its sixth year, Noods Levels is still developing, and having experienced guidance would “help shape the future”.
If you feel TREAD could be of use to a cause or project close to your heart, Izzy wants to hear from you. “We want people to feel this is for them,” she explains. “There’s a function on the website where you can send ideas, and we welcome that. It’s not age-specific, either – we’re planning projects with care homes and would love to work with primary school children in future, so if you think TREAD could be useful, just get in touch.”
noodslevels.com
